#but it is. SUCH a different experience to see queer characters in a superhero movie on the big screen???

[amaraudermind]

Okay the one thing I will say before I go to bed tonight is this:

I love Pedro with my WHOLE heart

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - lots, just LOTS

I thought I would be pretty lean reporting for Oct 2023 but then (for reasons relayed here) the weeklies got saved by a drunk avenging hacker in a hotel room.

Oct 2023 Wk 1

Except I still can't watch IFYLITA, because I use my other computer for it.

Gotta say though, watching tese mostly all in one day (for travel reasons) is beyond even my BL superpowers. I did my best tho.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Dangerous Romance (Fri YT) ep 8 of 12 - Sailom, sweetie, Kang is never sleeping alone again. It wasn't really translated, but Kang's way of speaking in that opening stinger was VERY cutsie. Also the gay sheets have made another appearance. I do have to say that "rich kid problems" is not my favorite story arc, but I still think this is a great Thai BL.

Naughty Babe (Sat YT) ep 6 of 8 - I love that they are finally talking to each other but Yi’s whole personality is shifting. Honestly, this pair is great at kissing and casual touches, but the friendships are the best thing about this franchise. Also Mr Chenne remains my fav character. But where did Diao's baby superhero team come from? And why? This show is very confusing... It’s also not very good.

My Universe (Sun iQIYI) You Are My Soulmate ep 7 - This was the one of the series I was looking forward to the most, because silly, pretty, and v BL. It is, in fact all those things and nothing more. So I'm enjoying it, of course.

Absolute Zero (Thai Weds iQIYI) ep 2 of 12 - I like it, but it feels like it's gonna be so sad. I'm having Promise and Dew the movie flashbacks. Plus 12 eps seems too long for this narrative thread. I am worried.

Venus in the Sky (Tues iQIYI) 6 of 10 eps - This show is so slow it's hardly worth the bandwidth, but we attained "baby is a floppy drunk" and thus a finger bite frustration scene, which was nice.

Only Friends (Sat YT) ep 9 of 10 (not a BL but I'm watching it anyway) - Ray is so mean to Sand. The not-a-thing with Sand & Nick was cute. I’ve had several experiences like that. All my queer friendship groups tend to be incestuous, but sometimes they're just too much of a sibling and trying to sleep with them is the most unsexy thing in the universe. To be fair, I’ve also been in Ton’s position (this ep). Jojo sure makes queer shizz. But also, Ton must have a magic rod with everyone wanting a repeat. (I'm so glad they put Neo in this role, no one else at GMMTV could play him as complex or sympathetic.)

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

You Are Mine (Taiwan Fri Viki) eps 5 of 10 - now officially known by me as "I'm too sunshine for this seme" where our boss is being hella obvious but our cinnamon roll is just too ooey-gooey to notice. Al.though, baby boy, he takes you home, sleeps on top of you, feeds you cookies (IN HIS BED) and keeps you in his space? Surely even this sunshine is catching a few rays of truth?

Gaga's *unintelligible gay murmuring* is my favorite caption EVER.

Also the name of my new ASMR YT channel.

Bon Appetit (Korea Weds iQIYI) 3-4 of 8 - ah gay panic, also what is Korea's obsession with 7 year separations? Is it only true love if you wait 7 years? Dohoon is SUCH a flirt, it's kinda great! Also, since it's Korea, we got us a bit of a love triangle with 2 hyung romances, so I (of course) am torn. Either way Dohoon is going down. I do love how much time we are spending with the food in this drama, finally one that lives up to its name. On an entirely different note, Korean camping is the most bizare thing to me. It's SO damn civilized. There will be NO DIRT. They pack blow torches. And full dinner sets. Every time I see it in a drama, I'm amused.

My Personal Weatherman AKA Taikan Yoho (Japan Sat Gaga) ep 7 of 8 - OMG these 2 are so in love with each other, and so ridiculous about it. They're tiny idiots but I love them.

If It’s With You AKA Even If I Fall In Love With You AKA Kimi to nara Koi wo Shite Mite mo’ (Japan Gaga) ep 1 of 5 - from MBS a live action adaptation of Kubota Maru’s manga ‘君となら恋をしてみても. Amane has stopped loving people due to trauma until he meets Ryuji. At first Amane just wants to play with Ryuji but… feelings.

I like the odd Japanese mature-childishness in this one. Plus a broken sunshine who is out in a kind of aggresive way and an instinctive caring seme. What's not to love? Well, it's Japan I'm sure it will surprise me one way or another.

Mr Cinderella 2 (Vietnam Sat YT) ep 3 of ? - the cray cray step brother quazi incest is a bit much for me. Why does VBL just suddenly get so unhinged like this?

Kiseki: Dear to Me (Taiwan Tues Viki & iQIYI) ep 9 of 13(?) - resumes next week

It's Airing But...

I Feel You Linger in the Air (Fri grey) ep 8 of 12 - I will try to watch 8-12 and do a series review when I get back in November but... not sure I will be able to. Fingers crossed.

Love in Translation (Sat iQIYI) ep 8fin - I will complete and drop a review in Nov.

What Did You Eat Yesterday Season 2 AKA Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 1 of 10 - 4th installment in this series (1st series, 1 special, 1 movie prior) about a lawyer who lives with his boyfriend, a hairdresser, and cooks for him. I find thie series more fun to binge, som I'm waiting until it completes its run.

I Cannot Reach You AKA I Can't Reach You AKA Kimi ni wa Todokanai (Japan Tues Netflix-Japan & ????) - in classic JBL fashion, I Cannot Reach You could not be reached. 

Can I Buy Your Love From A Vending Machine? AKA Sono Koi, Jihanki de Kaemasu ka? (Japan cinema release in-country only) - This one is a movie from Japan so in customary fashion who tf knows when (or if) it will get international distribution. Salaryman Ayumu Koiwai just can't tear his eyes away from the strong, muscular man as he checks on the stocks of the vending machine in his office.

In case you missed it?

Crazy Handsome Rich (Sun Gaga) Apparently ended its run I DNFed this at ep 3. So no review from me.

My Beautiful Man: Eternal AKA Utsukushii Kare Eternal (Japan movie Viki & Gaga) - Play it again Sam, only I'm kinda tired of this song. I was v dramatic tho. And it's always nice to be reminded JBL can kiss when it puts its mind to it. 8/10

Next Week Looks Like This

Upcoming October BL

10/31 SHADOW (Thai VIU ????) - this is a horror BL featuring ghosts and other paranormal elements in a high school setting. I'm not wild about Thai horror (or horror at all, but if it must be done in BL let Japan do it). It features Singto (who did paranormal BL He's Coming to Me) opposite Fluke N (who's done a couple horror's before). Also Fiat. Dan suffers from sleep paralysis, and in his dreams he sees a shadow that suffocates him. It gets worse when he transfers schools.

10/? Bump Up Project AKA Bump Up Business (Korea ????) - BL staring OnlyOneOf that released(??) as a movie in July but is now being recut and reissued as a series. Stars NineMill and from Idol Romance bulled as a love story between a trainee who is about to debut and a celebrity from the same agency (based on a webtoon). OnlyOneOf have been auditioning for this since Libido IMHO. You can watch me chronicle their BL MV work in this post. Idol Romance will do sad but can do good kisses (Wish You, Nobleman Ryu, Once Again, Kissable Lips, Poongduck 304, Tasty Florida, Tinted With You) but I don't think we will get any in this. After that OmegaX Shoulder bullshizz buisness I am very wary of this show.

2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED).

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

I've seen this Chinese drama like... no wait... okay it's like EVERY Chinese drama ever.

(both Mr Cinderella 2)

I only got to watch this scene and the bath, but bot were pretty darn good! I Feel You Linger in the Air

There's only one bed but they slept together on the floor anyway. One of BL's oddest tropes.

I do love a finger bite. (both Venus in the Sky)

Good advice

(Naughty Babe)

(Last week) 

[actuallylorelaigilmore]

2023 Movie Journey #13: Barbie

barbie. i had been so excited about this movie for such a long time! as i'm rapidly heading towards forty, i tend to have a pretty good gauge of what i like and what i don't--so good by now that i usually don't need much to know in advance what i'll love. this was one of those things.

it wasn't even related to the massive ad campaign or the giant fandom joy in response to it before i saw it myself--they announced that margot robbie was producing a barbie movie where she would play barbie and greta gerwig would write it, and that was kenough. i knew it was gonna be My Kind Of Movie.

and so i was excited, because there aren't that many of those. i try hard to go into movies with an open mind, because i really like liking things, and i'm happy to be surprised. but i also kind of feel like that's the stance i have to take, because very few movies are the sort i predictably love. musicals are rare, i'm a horror wimp even if i've gotten a little better at finding good horror comedies, and the majority of the other movies my local theater releases are action, superhero, or christian-centered.

so giving me a truly amazing cast crammed into a surprisingly tight story overflowing with feminism and feelings was a true gift, even better than i hoped for. and the length of my review probably won't indicate that, because i feel like barbie is a hard movie for me to review the way i do others--i don't have a ton of things i want to break down and criticize, but i also don't want to just list off why it's awesome. that would literally just be me making a long bullet-point list until i ran out of things i could remember.

and i feel like if you've seen the movie, you know why it's amazing and fun and deep and beautifully shallow, all at the same time. and if you haven't seen it, i really don't think i could explain the whole of it to you in a doing-it-justice way. so i'm just going to mention a few things, but don't let that make you think i only found a few things notable. this movie is art.

when it comes to some things i loved about this movie, let's start with the fact that it is my exact sense of humor. i couldn't get over that, the whole time, as ken is serenading barbie with a matchbox twenty song i definitely didn't used to think was a misogynist anthem and then the shot pulls back and it's ALL the kens doing the same thing. or the multiple group dance numbers. or simu liu as ken's archenemy, ken. or the movie's opening song that narrates AT barbie and changes as her experience does. seeing the movie a second time didn't make any of it less funny for me--it's a perfect blend of snark and meta jokes and queer tones.

another important and great thing! AMERICA FERRERA. i knew she was in the cast, but honestly, the cast list that was released before the movie even came out was soooo long, she was just one of many actors i like that i looked forward to. i didn't expect her to play such a central role, and despite this being The Barbie Movie, they really made her the heart of the story--or at least, a heart of the story. she grounds it in such a great way and adds a different kind of depth from what margot robbie could bring to actually playing (and looking like) a barbie doll.

i just love what america ferrara got to do with this role, and getting to see the kind of work she takes on over time. this movie was a nice reminder of how artificially limited the opportunities are, for marginalized talent--even a woman of color who's worked a lot, like she has, had to be sort of snuck into this movie and then made important once people were already watching. i'm grateful to greta gerwig and margot robbie and all the other people in charge for wanting to do that, but it still sucks to know that it wasn't ever going to happen otherwise. she wouldn't be given this kind of project to lead on her own, when she's just as talented and worth watching. she made me cry.

major shoutout also to the character in this movie who i originally named something like 'woman on a bench,' played by ann roth. i absolutely adored her and her scene; it was small but so meaningful. it really grabbed hold of me. and then i found out that she's a 91-year old friend of greta gerwig's in real life, and also happens to be a super-famous costume designer who worked on (among piles of other things) mamma mia! i love that.

another great casting note: i was really excited in advance about the fact that emma mackey was included, because i've very slowly been watching sex education with @actuallylukedanes--but even before i saw any of that show, i had seen gifs of her as maeve on tumblr for years and i couldn't get over how much she looked like margot robbie. then they put her in this movie with margot robbie, so of course i highly supported that.

what i didn't expect and wasn't really prepared for was the fact that they didn't just give us emma mackey. they gave us a sex education trifecta! leander and i spent the movie trying to figure out how we knew the mattel employee who seemed super familiar, only to eventually learn he was the actor who plays adam. and i still haven't been able to get past the facial hair and other barbie aesthetics that made him totally unrecognizable for me, but the fact that they also took the actor who plays eric and made him a ken? perfection.

literally the only problem i had with this movie was at the end. unlike my best friend, i completely agreed with barbie's choice to become human. my bipolar heart always lands on the side of 'why wouldn't you want all the feelings, even when they're so much they drown you and you don't think you can take it? more feelings please.'

but the very final scene, when she's getting supported by her new little found family (which i also loved, yay them) and heads into a building for what i definitely assumed was a job interview...has her going to the gynecologist. and this scene gave me possibly my first moment ever of being the person with an Unpopular Opinion. i used to play an ask game about that, and it was really fun, but i was always like, how do i know what's unpopular or popular?

in this case, my reaction really does seem to have been unpopular. or uncommon, anyway. we find out she's going to see her gynecologist. and barbie is lit up with joy, it's clearly meant to be a triumphant moment. finally, she's fully human. she's not perfect but she's a real woman.

and all i could think was, wait. wtf. does this movie think you need a vagina to be a real woman?!?? i literally sat in silence for a minute while the credits played before asking my best friend something like, if i was totally crazy for finding that moment transphobic.

because it's not like i don't know that there are people who claim to be feminists who hate trans women. i just didn't expect to end a movie i absolutely adored by feeling as if i'd just been slapped in the face by one.

and as far as i can tell since seeing it, almost nobody else interpreted the scene that way. a lot of trans folks seem to have appreciated the movie specifically because they felt seen by barbie's journey, not the opposite. and of course, the cast even has a trans woman in it! (she was great.) so i highly doubt the people making the movie are secretly trying to send a message about how much they hate trans people. on my second watch in theaters, when i already knew it was coming, it wasn't so rough.

but it still upset me in that first moment, and led to a whole personal epiphany that wasn't actually about barbie but that i guess i will forever have to thank the barbie movie for? so that's weird, though not bad. i just had to note all of that, because it was surprising and important and it's rare for me to realize that my reaction/opinion on something isn't one i can find tons of other people already shared if i look into it.

beyond that, though, this movie is just the best. it's everything. it gives us the nine-women supreme court that ruth bader ginsburg recommended, while also pointing out that too much power corrupts even the blankest of slates. it's here to teach kids about misogyny and to show everybody the wide range of outfits and accessories barbie has collected in her lifetime. it lets barbie have independence and leaves ken behind where i hope he one day realizes his rivalry with ken masks a totally different kind of tension, so he can have love after all. i don't think i'll ever get sick of it.

[excusethequality]

My 2024 in Film: July

Oh, dear. I am once again super behind on my listing duties.

I was so hoping to be caught up by October, but then I went and watched a boatload of movies in August and now I'm in the weeds once more.

But there's still time! Maybe I can make a big push and make it in time. Especially if I don't blather on about things as much I wound up doing in this post.

In any case, July was a pretty good month for movies. Rewatched some old goodies, tried out some classics I had never seen, took some chances.

Movies are under the break.

* = rewatch

142.

Shark Huntress

(2021)

— Animal attack Directed by: John Riggins

A woman teams up with her old group of environmentalist friends to get to the truth behind the death of her mother at the jaws of a shark.

This movie is trash.

It's so bad. Just truly bad writing. Nothing makes any friggin' sense. The guy who plays "Guru" is one of the worst actors I've ever seen. It was just a confounding and painful experience to finish.

I was toying with the idea of trying to watch all the shark attack movies and ranking them. But I quickly learned that shark movies are havens for the writers of low-budget garbage films. There's just so many truly terrible ones. I haven't fully given up the quest, but I do limit myself to one a month at most in order to protect my sanity.

143.*

Captain Marvel

(2019)

— Superhero Adventure Directed by: Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck

While on a military operation for an alien race known as the Kree, a soldier is taken prisoner and forced to realize that everything she thought she knew was a lie.

Ever since this movie came out people have been shitting on it, but I love it and y'all are out of your minds.

The best thing about it is that it's a character driven movie about someone coming to terms with their past hidden in the guise of a big superhero action movie.

People are so used to the standard MCU framework that they use that to judge it, not realizing that it was subverting the framework the entire time.

"Ugh," they complain, "Carol is too strong and she's so arrogant." She's a friggin' fighter pilot! Have you seen Top Gun? Those fuckers are as cocky as they come. And she's had to battle against sexism her whole career, so she can't show any hesitation or weakness.

And yes, Carol is incredibly strong. That's the whole point. She was the strongest character in the movie the whole time, but her past, her environment, and the toxic people around her had been holding her back the entire time.

The whole story is about her being forced to realize that none of the limiters she thought she had on her were real. They were all just ideas put on her that she could ignore if she stopped trying to play their games.

And if all that wasn't enough you've got an incredible cast, top tier friendship chemistry, queer undertones, and a cute cat.

I don't think it's at the level that will make you a fan if you don't like superhero movies. But it's definitely in my top-tier of my favorite superhero movies.

144.

جوائے لینڈ

[English title: Joyland]

(2022)

— Drama Directed by: Saim Sadiq

A Pakistani family must all bear hardship in different ways when the tensions between tradition and culture versus personal desires and family relationships start to come to a boil.

From the description and the trailer I assumed it was going to be more of a straight forward romantic drama about a romance between a man and the trans woman he works for at a theater. But it really is so much more than that.

The thing that won me over with it is that it never limits its story by focusing too much on any one character. By maintaining a sort of distance it allows you to see all the interactions between the characters and how any one action can ripple through the rest. And thus when things happens you get a more objective view of who, if anyone, is to blame.

I'd definitely recommend giving it a watch. It's a really fantastic bit of character work.

145.*

Miss Congeniality

(2000)

— Comedy Directed by: Donald Petrie

A cop goes undercover as a contestant in a beauty contest in order to take down a serial killer.

I remember there was a reason I decided to rewatch this, but I really don't know what it was.

It's a very 2000s movie, I'll say that about it. And it has not aged particularly well. Especially because if you want a beauty pageant comedy from this era you could just watch Drop Dead Gorgeous, which is funnier, less problematic, and doesn't try and portray cops as heroes.

...the April 25th joke is truly hilarious though. That's something I can't take that away from it.

146.

Leprechaun: Origins

(2014)

— Creature Feature Horror Directed by: Zach Lipovsky

Two couples are vacationing in Ireland, but an attempt to learn some local history backfires when they find themselves under attack by leprechauns.

For anyone reading this list that hates stupid Horror movies you'll be glad to know that this is the last movie in the Leprechaun franchise. I made it to the end!

But for anyone who does like stupid Horror movies you won't be glad to know that this is By Far the worst one.

It's not even a competition. This is the worst one by quite a large margin. There were some stupid entries in the Leprechaun franchise, but at least they all had their own demented sort of charm. This is just hollow.

I knew Warwick Davis wasn't going to be in it, but I figured, hey, he's getting older. I can see them thinking it's time to pass the torch.

But I wasn't expecting them to just change the format completely. The leprechauns don't even talk in this one. They're just feral little creatures here. The whole thing is just a really shoddily made creature feature.

There's also this style of horror filmmaking that I'm sure any horror fan is familiar with. It's particularly prevalent in creature features. But it's a really cheap style where they try to see how far they can get by cutting around anything interesting and relying on you filling in the gaps.

Let's make a fake scene here as an example. Okay, our setting is a cabin in the woods. Characters are acting scared. Oh, a shadow moves past the window? Close up of character looking outside. Jumpscare of something slamming into the window. Characters freaking out and backing away. Something smashes through the window and we quickly cut back to the characters running away before you can see what it was. They all run out of the room and slam the door closed just as something thuds into it. You hear monster noises as the characters struggle to hold the door closed as something on the other side charges into it repeatedly.

You see what I'm saying?

Single location, handful of actors, not much dialogue. And if you're really feeling fancy? Perhaps throw in the most meager of monster props, like a hand or something trying to slip through the crack in the door to heighten the illusion.

Heck, you can even have the creature attacking someone directly, and by using close-ups and a jumble of cuts you can try to suggest the chaos of a monster attack. But once again you're cutting around the actual object of interest.

Your film thusly has a hole in the middle; it is essentially hollow.

Keeps that budget real low. But it's an offensive style, because it relies on you thinking your audience won't notice that you gave them an illusion for dinner.

Sure, lots of horror movies show you very little, but the good ones are using that as a tool. Spielberg famously had to limit the amount the shark was in Jaws because his animatronic was malfunctioning constantly, but he's a talented director so he changed his style to match having to use the shark sparingly. The terror became knowing that something was in the water that you couldn't see. Peaceful scenes became menacing because you knew a killer was somewhere out there and the fact that you couldn't see it right now meant it was all the scarier.

The reason the show-nothing style of horror is the most prevalent in creature movies is because creatures are inherently expensive and easy to do badly. So you try to show them as little as possible. But creating scares without showing anything requires talent, and talent costs money, and these types of low-budget movies don't want to spend that kind of money.

And thus you end up with films like this that want to act like they're The Thing and having the monster coming after these people, but never show the thing.

(The reason why slashers are typically the most budget friendly of the horror genres is because you can show the killer as much as you want and not break the bank on effects.)

Long story short, this is a prime example of modern low-budget horror. The type most often seen in made-for-tv / made-for-streaming money grabs.

And as someone who has watched a lot of Horror, anytime I start something and notice these hallmarks? Oh, you better believe I'm cursing under my breath, because I know I'm about to be treated like an idiot for 90 minutes.

And this is such an egregious example of the style that even people who aren't big film nerds hate this stupid thing.

Just look at these average ratings:

Letterboxd: 1.5/5 IMDB: 3.2/10 Rotten Tomato audience score: 1.6/5

It is just that fucking lazy and stupid.

147.

My Dinner With Andre

(1981)

— Drama Directed by: Louis Malle

Two old friends meet and catch up over dinner.

I feel like I was led to believe this was a movie about dinner between theater majors. But in actuality it is more like a dinner with philosophy majors.

And those are very different dinners!

This is such an acclaimed and oft-mentioned movie, but I had never bothered with it because I was pretty sure I wasn't going to like it. But let it not be said that I don't push myself when it comes to film and try new things.

I think it's fair to say that your instincts about this film will probably turn out to be correct. Love it or hate it, it truly is a movie entirely about two dudes having a conversation over dinner.

I will say that that the first half is definitely harder to watch than the second half. Andre dominates the conversation in the first half and he's a new-agey kinda dude and of the sort that I don't do well with.

In the second half Wallace Shawn's character starts to assert himself in the conversation and I definitely liked it much more once it became more of a dialogue and less of Andre monologuing about nonsense.

148.

Anatomie d'une chute

[English title: Anatomy of a Fall]

(2023)

— Mystery Directed by: Justine Triet

A man is found dead on the ground below the window to his house's attic that he had been in the process of renovating. The only other person at home was his wife. As the circumstances around the fall become murkier and murkier the wife is forced to defend herself from accusations of murder. And the only other person with any clue what might have happened that day is their blind son.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, but I will say that there were definitely parts where I was completely distracted by my ignorance of the French criminal justice system.

All I know is the American system, and damn! It turns out they are quite different. And it very distracting to be watching a trial and having shit happen that apparently is very normal for a French trial, but just utterly out-of-line for an American one.

I know, I know: even US courtroom dramas almost never depict courts in an accurate manner. But the French system is just close enough to be relatable, but also completely different.

So through no fault of the film's, I was definitely taken out of a lot of scenes by my utter bewilderment over what was happening in the courtroom.

Aside from that though, just a tour de force in terms of acting. A really intriguing mystery. And it has definitely stuck with me after I watched it.

149.

The Third Man

(1949)

— Mystery Directed by: Carol Reed

An American author moves to Austria after being offered a job by a friend, but when he arrives he learns that his friend has recently died. However, the more he hears about the incident the more he begins to suspect that things aren't adding up.

This is an example of me finally getting around to watching some acclaimed film to see for myself.

It's alright. It's certainly well-made. But I'm rather character-centric when it comes to stories and there isn't a single character I really care about. And I have a hard time getting invested in a story when that's the case.

If you're more interested in the cinema of it all then there are better sources than I to describe why it's considered a classic.

150.

Platoon

(1986)

— War Directed by: Oliver Stone

It's 1967 and a new soldier has just arrived at an infantry unit in the Vietnam War. He soon learns that the Vietnam War was pretty fucked up.

Look at me! I'm on a roll here with acclaimed films.

I was watching something or another and they made reference to a classic scene from this movie. I've never watched this one, because War movies, and Vietnam War movies in particular, often aren't my thing. They are usually based around having character go through horrible ordeal after horrible ordeal, and then end on a note of "War is truly a terrible thing."

...I don't know about you, but I don't really need to watch a whole movie to know that war is fucked up. And I don't particularly like watching people suffer just to watch people suffer.

Someone might now be like, You watch all that Horror and you don't like watching people suffer?

And they're different! Horror isn't about death, the Horror genre is about SURVIVAL. The bad things that happen to the characters has a deeper meaning within the story, and seeing how they handle these troubles and move forward provides the story arc.

War movies are often about death or guilt or trauma.

And yeah, this one is no exception.

I will gladly concede that one of the reasons this movie feels so average to me is that it came out before I was born and was incredibly influential. So I came up on pieces that were refinements to its formula. It's hard sometimes to properly judge things within their own era, especially when you've seen people build upon what it did and further refine it over the decades.

So while I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to most people, if you're a big movie buff I think it is interesting to see how this fits into the timeline of the genre.

Also, while Charlie Sheen is utterly forgettable as the lead, Willem Dafoe is definitely bringing some heat.

151.*

The Waterboy

(1998)

— Sports Comedy Directed by: Frank Coraci

A man with a love for water and for hydrating the thirsty is fired from his job as the waterboy for a local college. But while trying to find a job at another college it's discovered that he actually has a natural gift for playing football as a linebacker.

And then I end the streak with an Adam Sandler comedy.

Although I hate modern Sandler comedies with a deep loathing, I still can't help but enjoy the older ones.

Look at some of this cast: Kathy Bates, Fairuza Balk, Henry Winkler.

I won't try and convince anyone of it's quality, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it.

The main character is just so earnest. Kathy Bates and Henry Winkler steal the show and are hilarious. And I've never seen Fairuza Bulk in a movie where she wasn't giving something unique to the role.

152.

The Wedding Singer

(1998)

— Rom-Com Directed by: Frank Coraci

A wedding singer in the 1980s falls in love with a bride-to-be.

I do believe this was the only early Sandler comedy that I never saw before.

Well, actually, after watching it again I'm pretty sure I had at least seen parts of it before? A couple scenes definitely felt familiar, so maybe a family member was watching it one day back in my younger days. But I really couldn't have told you a single thing about the plot, so I'm going to go ahead and count this as something new to me.

For a Sandler movie I was kind of shocked at how down to Earth it was. His movies of this era usually had some sort of zany element to them and this is one is played pretty straight.

The most maddening thing about Adam Sandler is that he really can act when he wants to, he just chooses not to for 99% of his movies. And he is so much better when he's playing down-to-earth characters than he is playing wacky ones.

153.*

Drop Dead Gorgeous

(1999)

— Mockumentary Comedy Directed by: Michael Patrick Jann

Things at a beauty pageant in small-town Minnesota turn deadly when someone starts trying to off the contestants.

After Miss Congeniality left a bad taste in my mouth I felt compelled to watch a beauty pageant comedy with some chops.

I could write an essay on this film. There is just so much going on here.

I know people that love it and I know people that hate it and I understand where both are coming from. It's equal parts ingenious and flawed. But it's the way it's flawed that is so interesting.

(well, except for almost everything surrounding Will Sasso's character, which is far and away the cringiest element of the film.)

In spite of being completely over-the-top it still somehow manages to be one of the most accurately Minnesotan movies ever made. And the problems I see in it were all problems that I saw while growing up in 90s Minnesota. And it's the weirdly accurate depictions of both the good and the bad that make it so compelling to me.

It's just doing so many little things that I never see in other movies. The way it shows how young people often have really passionate interests? And the way that sometimes those interests are incredibly esoteric? The accuracy in the way that small towns gossip. The way people at parades in real life look hot and as if they've perhaps been in the sun too long. Almost every scene has some little details in the dialogue or in how a shot is set up that I could point to.

And I haven't even gotten into all the amazing performances in it (not to mention all the before-they-were-famous big names that show up). There are just SO many hilarious women in this movie. If I had to pick a favorite it would have to be Allison Janney, because (like always) she just always finds a way to crack me up.

So yeah, I have a weird love for this movie. But if it's issues are a little too much for others, I do understand.

154.

The Vampire Lovers

(1970)

— Horror Directed by: Roy Wade Baker

A vampire woman specializes in seducing her victims, but things get tricky when she falls for her latest victim and those around her begin to suspect that her intentions might not be on the level.

Came across this one on Tubi and was in the mood to take a chance.

I was a little worried at the beginning, because it was shaping up to be a very stereo-typical Hammer Horror movie. But I've gotta say, there's some stuff to love in here.

While 50% is a pretty straight-forward Dracula ripoff with as many boob shots as they could fit in, the other 50% is a pretty fun queer vampire story?

As long as you know what you're getting into to I think it was a pretty enjoyable watch.

155.

A Streetcar Named Desire

(1951)

— Drama Directed by: Elia Kazan

A woman goes to stay with her sister and husband-in-law after being forced to sell her family home.

Not gonna lie: I know this is a classic, but I finally got around to watching it because of The Simpson's episode "A Streetcar Named Marge" (S4E2).

[and I love that episode even more now that I understand all the jokes they were making.]

I really do understand why this is an acclaimed film, there's a lot about this I really enjoyed. But Blanche makes me want to put my head through a wall.

I have nothing against Vivien Leigh's performance, she's doing a great job, I get what the movie was going for, and I can't explain it...but the character infuriates me.

I get that this is a me problem. I really do think I might have loved this movie if not for the fact that Blanche was driving me slowly but surely to madness.

156.*

The Muppets Take Manhattan

(1984)

— Family Comedy Directed by: Frank Oz

The Muppets have just graduated college and go to New York City to try and stage their show on Broadway.

I thought I had never seen this before and sought to rectify that, but eventually realized that I had seen this at some point as a child. I also now know why I had forgotten so much about it.

I have a hard time knowing how to rate this.

If I'm rating it against all movies? It's alright. There's a lot of fun to had. There's a lot of sweetness and good humor. But on my scale of Muppet movies? It was a bit of a let down.

This came out after The Muppet Movie and before The Great Muppet Caper. And yet it lacks the heart of The Muppet Movie and the plot/character development of The Great Muppet Caper.

Okay, so technically it has a plot. But I would argue that it has less of a plot than a string of things that happen.

There's a quote I think about a lot when it comes to movies and it comes from Terry Pratchett's book Hogfather. In it a philosopher named Didactylos has a theory about the origin of the universe, "Things just happen, what the hell."

And it perfectly describes how some stories are written: things just happen.

It's not a flowing stream of events that naturally lead from one point to another. It's just a string of events that happen because they were written that way.

So if you're a Muppets fan, definitely give it a try one day. There's some fun stuff in here. (This is the movie that led to the Muppet Babies show for instance.)

But I just can't see myself wanting to watch this one again when I could just watch one of the other ones instead.

157.

The Last Dragonslayer

(2016)

— Family Fantasy Comedy Directed by: Jamie Magnus Stone

A former orphan must take on the mantle of a dragon slayer in order to free her adoptive father from a magical spell.

This is only going to make sense to a select group of you, but you can really tell this was based on a Jasper Fforde book. I haven't actually read this one, but the fact that it's very Fforde-ian seems to suggest to me that they at least got the vibes right.

Fforde in general reminds me of Terry Pratchett...but like a sillier Pratchett without the substance and flair. And likewise this movie reminds me of the live action Discworld movies...but without the same substance and flair.

But in spite of its flaws I still had a good time. Although it is rather heavy-handed in its messages, I think it has a really good heart. I really like the main character, I like its anti-corporate messages, and I like that it seems like it was made with genuine care.

And it's a kids movie! It's not made for me. And I would gladly show this to a kid and have a good time watching it with them. So I can't really say it isn't successful.

158.

Deadpool & Wolverine

(2024)

— Superhero Action Adventure Comedy Directed by: Shawn Levy

In order to save his universe from eradication Deadpool goes on a journey across the multiverse to find the missing key.

I keep telling myself that I'm gonna stop watching all these half-assed superhero movies...and I keep doing it anyways.

'Surely THIS one will be different,' I tell myself.

But I grew up reading comics and watching cartoons and my inherent curiosity at how those stories are being adapted keeps me coming back. And hey, the previous Deadpool movies were Fox productions not Disney ones, so maybe Disney will leave them alone to do their own thing?

But no.

It's just more of the usual for MCU movies.

Sure, the previous Deadpool movies had lots of references, but they also had stories and actual character development. (they also had a different director than this one)

This is just nothing but empty calories.

"Hey remember this? Remember this?" for over 2 hours.

And I do remember those things, and there is some enjoyment that comes from that. But damn. I need some actual food for dinner, y'all. You can't just give me potato chips.

I was just thoroughly not having a good time by the end of the movie. And it's such a pity because sometimes you could get a shimmer of what this could have been. Emma Corrin was giving a really engaging performance, which is especially impressive considering her character is given absolutely nothing to work with.

Likewise, Hugh Jackman is out here bringing all the emotion he can (and was my favorite part thing about the movie), but it doesn't really work to have one character having serious emotions in a loony tunes potato chip world with no stakes.

——————

——————

July Stats

——————

Movies watched this month: 17

Rewatch percentage: 29.4% (5/17)

Favorite new movie of the month: Anatomy of a Fall

Least favorite: Shark Huntress

——————

Previous months’ posts:

JAN | FEB | MAR p.1 | MAR p.2 | APR | MAY | JUN

[llendrinall]

Our Flag Means Death

The gay pirates show. I am amazed by the fandom reaction to that tv show and I am surprised by my own joyful reaction to it. I don’t remember when I was last so excited about something. I have been thinking about it for the past few days and I think it’s a combination of factors.

One, the show is good. More later.

Two, the show is complete. Yes, yes, we all want a second season, we need it, we crave it, but the show itself is rounded. We don’t have to pick the good bits around the rotten core, we can take it as a whole and enjoy it whole. More later.

Three, we as the public were tired of very bad fiction from the last few years. Or at least I was very tired. I look back and, really? I had erased from my mind that there ever was a Sherlock Season 4 and I’m sorry to remind you now. And, Marvel? And Fantastic Beasts? Giving fandom even less than what Supernatural was giving. No musical motives, no carefully chosen palette to link two characters, just bland consumer-ready fiction.

We were starved for stories with density, with something to pick apart and analyze. I am compulsively reading analysis of OFMD’s elements (food, clothes, hairstyles, music, touch, skin, everything!). There are so many! Fandom is used to not getting what it wants and having to squint and read between the lines, but I think that lately the fiction products were so plain and formulaic that we didn’t even have that. No more, “look at Bucky’s way of moving compared to the Winter Soldier” or “Fandom likes Loki because he is female-coded and women know how it feels to be the second place in affection despite being better”. It was all sugar coating and no filling.

Of course, this answers to how I curate my experience and what I consume. Maybe I am missing on a lot of good takes. But it’s telling that the hottest idea I have read in fandom in the last two years is this essay: Everybody is beautiful and no one is horny (so good! Go read it) which precisely points out that there is a certain emptiness in the beautiful superheroes bodies we are presented.

Now, about the first two points, the show isn’t good because it has an explicit loving queer relationship (it has three!). It is good because it is complete. As audiences we are used to pick little details and squeeze them until we get an ounce of meaning we can drink. And we love it! We hate the frustration of never getting more than that, but we enjoy those contextual details because they make relationships feel real and organic.

Too often, white heterosexual relationships are built on empty ground. There is a man, there is a woman and by the laws of cheap narrative they must like each other despite not showing any chemistry on screen. It’s only natural that the woman would show instant interest on the hero even though they barely talked through the movie. Do I need to give examples? Come on, just think of any movie and tell me, why were those two together again?

OFMD doesn’t build relationships like that. Making the queer relationships explicit doesn’t mean they can now be lazy and simply push the two characters together. No, we still get the beautiful hints, the slowly built tension, the story written and coded in the empty spaces. This is good writing.

The show is complete (despite the devastating need for a second season) because it can be consumed whole. There is no obvious element missing, nor things we would rather not see and that we swallow because we have to. There is not “if only” hanging in the air. Sure, some say they would have liked to see more women and more of Mary, but I’m very happy with what we saw of her in episode 10, plus considering the things we have had to put up with…

 Orange is the New Black was the first show where I saw different bodies (fat bodies, thin bodies, tall, short, young, aging, white, black, brown…). It was so revolutionary to see so many different women! Especially 40+ aged women. But the show is a drama and there is sexual assault and after a couple of seasons it derails badly.

Brooklyn 99 was the first show where I saw “more than one”. More than one Latina woman. More than one black man. Eventually more than one queer character. And it’s a comedy! In which the white male hero actually listens and checks his behavior and apologizes and gives up prizes. But it’s also a cop show and even though they had tackled the topic of racism… Yeah, no.

Galavant is a gorgeous musical comedy in a fantasy setting. Amazing. Very recommendable. It tried new things. There is a different take on masculinity. But the best part are the songs not the story.

 These are shows I like, but all of them have a missing piece. I won’t say that OFMD is perfect, but it is rounded and complete where other shows aren’t. It’s balanced. And it’s always giving content. When you aren’t watching the two oblivious idiots fall in love, you are watching POC representation and colonialism and class relations (oh, boy, class relations) and different definitions of what it means to be a man and just a bunch of idiots making each other better, together, by unlearning toxic lessons.

We were licking at the syrup of dummy cakes, looking for crumbs, and finally, finally, we have an actual cake with filling and cream and an orange –not a cherry, no, an actual orange– sliced in two at the top.

[shititbe]

Anyway, Peter Parker is Bi, and I Won’t Be Convinced Otherwise.

Firstly, we have to get our bases covered. What exactly is Bi-sexuality? What is sexuality? 

Sexuality is defined as a persons identity in relation to gender(s) they are attracted to. Why is this important? Peter’s sexuality has never been specifically stated in the comics, nor in any other form of media. It’s assumed that he is straight because of his popular relationship with Mary Jane Watson in the comics, and the movies. 

Now that we have a bases for what exactly sexuality is and how it’s defined, let’s go over Peter’s partners. 

Obviously Peter and Mary Jane are a piece of comic book history. They eventually get married, though sadly, during the events of Civil War II (I think, don’t quote me) Peter and Mary Jane sell their marriage to Mephisto in order to save Aunt May

They later had their memories of their marriage restored, they have yet to get back together and it’s been a few issues if I remember correctly. Next we have Peter’s first, and most unfortunate love, Gwen Stacy. 

They dated in high school where she later died. Of course, Peter has dated other people (namely, Black Cat, Betty Brant, Carol Danvers, Anna Maria, Cindy Moon, Lian Tang, and so on). Since we have his known history of heterosexuality out there, we need to move onto another important part of Peter’s Bi-sexuality. An important implication in any media, especially queer media though, and that is the homoerotic subtext. 

Homoerotic subtext is important part of queer culture, a lot of the time it’s used to portray a characters queerness without saying it out (see: Dorian Gray by Oscar Wild or Great Gatsby By Fitz). In current decade, homoerotic subtext is often used for queer baiting or creating more realistic male friendships. 

So what’s the difference between someone creating a health male friendship (or a character comfortable in their heterosexuality) and implying a character is queer? 

Here are some examples of a healthy male character, both with himself and his friendships.  

Clearly he’s just taking the shit, and messing around with Reed. He’s comfortable enough (or as I like to see it, so traumatized because good god this guy has been Spider-Man since he was 15 good god that’s awful. He probably doesn’t care anymore). Here are some examples of Peter a little more than just a straight man shooting the shit. 

This has three meanings. Two of which I will take, one of which is just deeply embarrassing. Despite Peter’s history with humiliating events, I don’t think he would get his own spunk in his eyes. Leaving the other two options, he has experience getting spunk of - some kind - in his eyes, and/or he’s taking the shit again. Which is very likely. 

Kissing a cop? For....no reason? A little not so hetero of you Peter. 

You can practically hear his disappointment in his voice. Also could be read as taking the shit, but why would you. 

Making out with The Thing? Gay. 

This one is the most important. Peter is clearly tired, annoyed by his teammates (see wolverine being wolverine in the corner). Shits on fire, its mid battle, and Peter has the audacity to mutter “I hate men” to himself. The only people I have every heard say this in that was are lgbt and straight women, and lgbt men. This kind of expression only comes from people who date, or deal with men in a completely different world than straight men. Straight men use this phrase as an endearment, “Oh have you seen Bill today, I hate that guy.” “Man Jerry can do so many push-ups, I hate that guy.” Very different language, and implications (I also, obviously don’t know how straight men speak). 

 Now that we’ve gone over our bases, and homoerotic subtext. How else could we gather that Peter Parker is Bi? There are many tropes in media - queer media - that allure to a characters queerness. Like homoerotic subtext, there are ways to tell an audience something without specifically saying it. 

This is a gay wedding Peter went to in the recent comics. I don’t know if any of you have been to a gay wedding recently, but Peters face (the first panel above the wedding) is the same exact face I made at my first gay wedding. It’s the face of excitement for not only the couple, but for yourself. The hope that maybe, you too can actually be in a same-sex relationship. 

I’m also going to allure to queer tropes as stated previously. Such as the real, and fictional trope of lgbt people sticking together. Thousands of years of belittlement and oppression will make groups of people not want to wonder out, and subconsciously look for others like them. 

Johnny Storm (and Wade Wilson since he comes in later but I couldn’t find a picture of the confirmation) is cannon Bi-sexual (Pan-sexual). 

Their friendship is deeply homoerotic as most queer friendships in media and real life are. Johnny flirts with Peter on many occasions (saying his ideal women is a female version of Peter, inviting him over to watch is sex tape, and so on) and of course oh my god they were roommates. 

Some other popular queer tropes are: Found Family, Soulmates, and Enemies to lovers. Because it’s superhero related, this includes the Identity Porn tag as well.  

Peter Parker and Wade Wilson have a famous Love/Hate relationship. I mean, how could you expect anything less when your first meeting with this known mercenary is him throwing your civilian persona out the window of a car. Now, Wade still doesn’t know Peter is Spider-Man in the current run of comics, but that doesn’t make anything about them any less gay. 

For the Found Family Trope: 

Because it’s Peter and Wade, their whole development can be read as Enemies to Friends to Lovers, so I wont bother backing that up because, uh, it speaks for itself. One panel really does to add that cause though 

I’m not going to explain what a free-pass list is.

The Soulmates part I know I have to back up. 

For SoulMates:  

Now this panel requires a little explanation. Wade kills Peter, not knowing he’s Spider-Man. Weasel takes over for Peter (they don’t know its him) so no one suspects he’s dead. Deadpool begins to feel guilty he killed his best buds best bud, so he tries to bring Peter back to life. Losing his stunning good looks (switching back to how he looked before Weapon X making his wife Shiklah estranged (then she married Dracula but thats beside the point)). Spider-Man is Peter’s “true self” or patronus for Harry Potter fans. Wade is stupid and hasn’t connected the dots yet, effectively making him the biggest simp in history. Seriously, who destroys their marriage for the c h a n c e for getting some with their idol? A Simp, that’s who.

Peter forgives Wade for killing him (and for saving him from killing their genetic daughter itsy-bitsy). If someone killed me they better be hot as fuck before I even thing about forgiving them. Ignoring Peter’s super sexy forgiving nature, uh, he’s kinda simping. 

Died in each others arms. Nothing else is needed. 

They’re heartmates. From what I read, the feeling has to be mutual in order for it to work. The witches (long story, comics are hard to explain) that captured deadpool were expecting his wife so they could get the headmistress back. Instead, they got Peter. Basically Heartmates = soulmates but chosen for you instead of chosen by you. 

To conclude my point: 

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk. 

[eviltothecore13]

Fanfiction conflict usually relies, moreover, on some level of internal conflict--not just external conflict--in part because as a genre it's about playing with emotion against a wide range of complex backdrops. A totally secure, confident person who knows precisely who they are, what they think, and how that should translate into action? That person is a lot harder to figure that arc out with, because they have minimal internal conflict to work with. You can write a perfectly good novel about such a character, sure, but if you want to write fanfiction about them it's probably going to involve a certain amount of their being so totally emotionally disconnected that they have absolutely failed to notice their own emotional conflicts. Which: not going to lie, I love that shit. Absolutely love it. But it's way harder to write about in a fandom context because you have to construct realistic reasons for such a person to either have no idea what their emotions are doing or construct external reasons that the emotional desire is totally infeasible that you then have to work very, very hard to override.

...huh. That is an idea that had never crossed my mind, that people are thinking of fanfiction as a *genre* instead of...essentially, as either a novel or a short story (or something even shorter that might be essentially a short scene rather than a whole story, or even a 100-word drabble) where someone else created the character (and presumably you liked the character and wanted to see more of them--which is why it's always confused me when a character in fanfic is wildly different to canon, because...this no longer feels like I'm getting more of the character I like! It feels like a totally different character. And in multiple fandoms I've had the experience of "I wanted to read more about this cool character scheming and outwitting everyone/being sassy and funny/getting into badass fight scenes/etc", though probably with added 'oh and they're queer' and maybe with something like 'more interactions with this other character they could have an interesting dynamic with!' or "what if they survived their canon death" or something, and instead all the fics are about how they hate themself and want to die and it's like...this is not giving me a remotely similar experience to the original reasons I loved this character...this might as well be original fiction about an new character at this point and that wasn't what I was looking for).

The idea that you can write a good novel about a character with genuine confidence but would have to change that to write fanfic about them is making me go ???. I know there are things that can work in FANFICS that don't work so well in NOVELS (like, short fics that are just a single scene; porn without plot; etc) but I'm not sure how something could work in a *novel* but not in *fanfic*, because...surely if you've written a good novel, and the characters and setting are from a series you're a fan of that someone else created, you've written a good fanfic? It's not the ONLY way to write a good fanfic, but I don't see why the character being confident would be a good thing in the original story but a bad thing in the fic.

Then again if you asked me what genre any of my fics were I'd have never said "fanfic" as the answer. Most of them I'd either say the same genre as the canon (horror, for some; science fiction, maybe; superhero action, for at least one), or sometimes a different genre ("the canon is not a detective story but this fic is a detective story because it focuses on a canon supporting character who is a detective, rather than on the main character of canon, who is not", or various setting change AUs that put the characters of a modern sci-fi-horror series into medieval fantasy or steampunk or a heist story; various short comedic ficlets for non-comedic canons like "the characters from this zombie series argue about zombie movies for a few hundred words".) One or two are smut. If you asked me what genre the majority of fics on AO3 were, I'd guess probably romance? But definitely not exclusively, because I've seen everything from detective story casefic, to slice-of-life family fluff, to "this character is horribly injured and fighting for their life!" (whump, I guess, though there are types of whump I love and types I can't stand and some people seem to hear the word "whump" and assume the latter...), sometimes all in the same fandom. (Of course, that might be "detective story casefic BUT these two characters are together now", but that's not the same as being romance genre.)

Projection is definitely part of why fanfiction authors write characters as deeply insecure (even and especially when they are not in canon), but I don't think it's the whole story.

I think it's also that insecurity is seen as a "virtuous" character flaw. Saying that your main character is "too humble" is the fiction equivalent of telling a potential employer that your greatest weakness is working too hard. It's safer and easier than approaching those ugly but more interesting character flaws like selfishness, wrath, prejudice. Ugly things that exist in all people, to some extent.

If it is projection, it's an idealized projection to only paint one's cleanest flaws into their story.

[themollyjay]

The Myths of Forced Diversity and Virtue Signaling.

In my novel Mail Order Bride, the three main characters are a lesbian and two agendered aliens.  In my novel Scatter, the main character is a lesbian, the love interest is a pansexual alien, and the major side characters include a half Cuban, half black Dominican lesbian, a Chinese Dragon, a New York born Jewish Dragon, and a Transgender Welsh Dragon.  In my novel The Master of Puppets, the Main Characters are a lesbian shapeshifting reptilian alien cyborg and a half black, half Japanese lesbian.  The major side characters include three gender fluid shapeshifting reptilian alien cyborgs, and a pansexual human.  In my novel Transistor, the main character is a Trans Lesbian, the love interest is a Half human/Half Angel non-observant Ethiopian Jew, and the major side characters include a Transgender Welsh Dragon (the same one from Scatter), a Transgender woman, a Latino Lesbian, an autistic man, three Middle Eastern Arch Angels, and a hive mind AI with literally hundreds of genders.  In my novel The Inevitable singularity, one of the main characters is a lesbian, another has a less clearly defined sexuality but she is definitely in love with the lesbian, and the third is functionally asexual due to a vow of chastity she takes very seriously.  The major side characters include a straight guy from a social class similar to the Dalit (commonly known as untouchables) in India, a bisexual woman, a man who is from a race of genetically modified human/frog hybrids, and a woman from a race of genetically modified humans who are bred and sold as indentured sex workers.

Why am I bringing all of this up?  Well, first, because it’s kind of cool to look at the list of different characters I’ve created, but mostly because it connects to what I want to talk about today, which should be obvious from the title of the essay.  The concepts of ‘forced diversity’ and ‘virtue signaling’.

For those who aren’t familiar with these terms, they’re very closely related concepts.  ‘Forced Diversity’ is the idea that characters who aren’t neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males are only ever included in a story because of outside pressure from some group (usually called Social Justice Warriors, or The Woke Brigade or something similar) to meet some nebulous political agenda.  The caveat to this is, of course, that you can have a women/women present as long as they are hot, don’t make any major contributions to the resolution of the plot, and the hero/heroes get to fuck them before the end of the story. ‘Virtue Signaling’, according to Wikipedia, is a pejorative neologism for the expression of a disingenuous moral viewpoint with the intent of communicating good character.

The basic argument is that Forced Diversity is a form of virtue signaling.  That no one would ever write characters who aren’t neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males because they want to.  They only do it to please the evil SJW’s who are somehow both so powerful that they force everybody to conform to their desires, yet so irrelevant that catering to them dooms any creative project to financial failure via the infamous ‘go woke, go broke’ rule.

What the people who push this idea of Forced Diversity tend to forget is that we exist at a point in time when creators actually have more creative freedom than are any other people in history.  Comic writers can throw up a website and publish their work as a webcomic without having to go through Marvel, DC or one of the other big names, or get a place in the dying realm of the news paper comics page.  Novelists can self-publish with fairly little upfront costs, musicians can use places like YouTube and Soundcloud to get their work out without having to worry about music publishers.  Artists can hock their work on twitter and tumblr and a dozen other places. Podcasts are relatively cheap to make, which has opened up a resurgence in audio dramas.  Even the barrier to entry for live action drama is ridiculously low.

So, in a world where creators have more freedom than ever before, why would they choose to people their stories with characters they don’t want there?  The answer, of course, is that they wouldn’t.  Authors, comic creators, indie film creators and so on aren’t putting diverse characters into their stories because they are being forced to. They’re putting diverse characters into their stories because they want to.  Creators want to tell stories about someone other than the generically handsome hypermasculine cisgendered heterosexual white males that have been the protagonists of so many stories over the years that we’ve choking on it. A lot of times, creators want to tell stories about people like themselves.  Black creators want to tell stories about the black experience. Queer creators want to tell stories about the queer experience.

I’m an autistic, mentally ill trans feminine abuse survivor.  Every day, I get up and I struggle with PTSD, with an eating disorder, with severe body dysmorphia, with anxiety and depression and just the reality of being autistic and transgender.  I deal with the fact that the religious community I grew up in views me as an abomination, and genuinely believes I’m going to spend eternity burning in hell.  I deal with the fact that people I’ve known for decades, even members of my own family, regularly vote for politician who publicly state that they want to strip me of my civil rights because I’m queer.  I’m part of a community that experiences a disproportionately high murder and suicide rate.  I’ve spent multiple years of my life deep in suicidal depression, and to this day, I still don’t trust myself around guns.

As a creator, I want to talk about those issues.  I want to deal with my life experiences.  I want to create characters that embody and express aspects of my lived experience and my day-to-day reality.  No one is forcing me to put diversity into my books.  I try to include Jewish characters as often as I can because there have been a number of important Jewish people in my life.  I include queer people because I’m queer and the vast majority of friends I interact with on a regular basis are queer.  I include people with mental illnesses and trauma because I am mentally ill and have trauma, and I know a lot of people with mental illnesses and trauma.  My work may be full of fantastical elements, aliens and dragons and angels and superheroes and magic and ultra-high technology and AI’s and talking cats and robot dogs and shape shifters and telepaths and all sorts of other things, but at the core of the stories is my own lived experience, and neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males are vanishingly rare in that experience.

Now, I can hear the comments already.  The ‘okay, maybe that’s true for individual creators, but what about corporate artwork?’.   Maybe not in those exact words, but you get the idea.

The thought here is that corporations are bowing to social pressure to include characters who aren’t neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males, and that is somehow bad. But here’s the thing. Corporations are going to chase the dollars.  They aren’t bowing to social pressure.  There’s no one holding a gun to some executive’s head saying, “You must have this many diversity tokens in every script.”  What is happening is that corporations are starting to clue into the fact that people who aren’t neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white males have money.  They are putting black characters in their shows and movies because black people watch shows and spend money on movies.  They are putting queer people in shows and movies because queer people watch shows and spend money on movies.  They are putting women in shows and movies because women watch shows and spend money on movies.

No one is forcing these companies to do this.  They are choosing to do it, the same way individual creators are choosing to do it.  In the companies’ cases the choices are made for different reasons.  It’s not because they are necessarily passionate about telling stories about a particular experience, but because they want to create art to be consumed by the largest audience possible, which means that they have to expand their audience beyond the neurotypical cisgendered heterosexual white male by including characters from outside of that demographic.

And the reality is, the cries of ‘forced diversity’ and ‘virtue signaling’ almost always come from within that demographic.  Note the almost.  There are a scattering of individuals from outside that demographic which do subscribe to the ‘forced diversity’ and ‘virtue signaling’ myths, but that is a whole other essay.  However, within that demographic, lot of the people who cry about ‘forced diversity’ see media and content as a Zero-Sum game.  The more that’s created for other people, the less that is created for them.

In a way, they’re right. There are only so many slots for TV shows each week, there are only so many theaters, only so much space on comic bookshelves and so on.  But at the end of the day, its literally impossible for them to consume all the content that’s being produced anyway.  So, while there is, theoretically less content for them to consume, as a practical matter it’s a bit like someone who is a meat eater going to a buffet with two hundred items, and then throwing a tantrum because five of the items happen to be vegan.

The worst part is, if they could let go of how wound up they are about the ‘forced diversity’ and ‘virtue signaling’ they could probably enjoy the content that’s produced for people other than them.  I mean, I’m a pasty ass white girl, and I loved Black Panther.

So, to wrap out, creators, make what you want to make, and ignore anyone who cries about forced diversity or virtue signaling.  And to people who are complaining about forced diversity and virtue signaling, I want to go back to the buffet metaphor.  You need to relax.  Even if there are a few vegan options on the buffet, you can still get your medium rare steak, or your chicken teriyaki or whatever it is you want.  Or, maybe, just maybe, you could give the falafel a try. That shit is delicious.

[wota-tenebrarum]

I’m always so irked by that old “MCU is military propaganda” take because you don’t even have to watch very closely to see how untrue it is Multiple characters leave the military/quit doing business with them at great personal cost because it doesn’t allow them to actually help anyone, the military getting its hands on certain technology is just about always framed as a bad thing, and the entire US Department of Defense is never portrayed as anything but an obstacle to doing actual good. This precedent was set IN THE FIRST MOVIE, and has continued through to the present. Like, just... Isaiah Bradley, guys. Isaiah Bradley. I think many of these people are just annoyed that there are multiple good characters who were, at one point, soldiers. And that’s not even necessarily on the MCU; the comics are mostly responsible for that. It’s an easy way to explain why a character has combat experience/speaks a different language/has traveled a lot, plus the Golden Age spanned two large-scale US military conflicts so military service was a relatable thing for a lot of readers when several classic characters were created. As for Tony’s vision of a “suit of armor around the world that might impact people’s freedoms”, it’s a huge leap to call that military apologetics or whatever. The context is pretty different, the idea is shown to be full of holes, and his attempt to enact it created ULTRON, of all things, which caused the destruction of a foreign city that the movies often hearken back to as a senseless tragedy. So I wouldn’t say that’s a great endorsement of US “peacekeeping” efforts, either. And no, Thanos does not mean Tony was supposed to be right all along, as it’s plainly obvious no earthly defense system could have stopped him. Tony is speaking out of fear and frustration when he brings the idea up again in Endgame; there’s nothing to suggest it would have helped in the slightest and that’s kind of the entire point of that bit of dialogue. Nobody has any media literacy anymore. I blame the overabundance of video essays, partially. Like, hey guys, guess what, there’s a good chance that early 20-something with an undergraduate finance degree who one day on a whim started making Youtube “deep dives” about 90s cartoons probably doesn’t actually have the skill set to be analyzing things critically with any real depth. It really doesn’t matter if their heart’s in the right place; good intentions aimed the wrong way are useless and just give ammunition to people with bad intentions. And just, idk, not everything is a conspiracy, guys. Oversight is far more common than outright malicious intent. Writing movies is hard. Go focus your efforts on real problems. As far as the MCU goes, it actually needs: - More prominent female characters (the goofy-but-well-intentioned “She’s got help” bit in Endgame required a few too many side characters) - More queer representation - More non-white representation - Less emphasis on America (though it’s not necessarily wrong to center your franchise on a particular region of the world) - Etc And it’s actually getting better at this stuff! Slowly. Far too slowly. But it’s happening and it’s always so exciting when those boundaries expand just a little more. Like, Moon Knight is a Jewish Latino dude and Ms. Marvel stars a Pakistani-American Muslim girl. Even if it was really, really on the nose, that kid asking Scarlet Scarab “are you an Egyptian superhero?” in the last episode of Moon Knight made me smile. And these are series, not just 2.5-ish hour movies! And the movies are getting batter at this, too! It’s all very encouraging. But military recruitment/apologetics?  Not supported by the text. Like, what the fuck?

[blanddcheadcanons]

May I ask your opinions on birds of prey (2020)? I’m not trying to start an argument or anything, I’m just genuinely curious to know your thoughts on it. Personally I really liked it, although there’s definitely a couple of flaws here and there, but I really hope we see more of Renee, Dinah, Cass and Helena in the DCEU and they’re not thrown away completely.

It was good.  Not the best but good and original. The format was refreshing for a superhero movie.  I loved the portrayal of Roman Sionis because he was super entertaining but at the same time unsympathetic which is important.  I didn’t love the portrayal of Mister Zsasz but maybe that was the point.  In media we glorify serial killers and Mister Zsasz is no different in the comics.  But in the movie he’s creepy and unsettling.  A threat sure but not one to be proud of.  There was queer coding and that sucks.  It’s almost like she put that in there to discourage dude bros from identifying with Zsasz.  She kinda made him a Smithers character to Sionis’ Mister Burns.  That’s a stretch tho.  I am trying to identify intent which I am unable to truly do.  

Like I said I liked it.  The writer is penning the script for the upcoming Flash movie.  So maybe as she gets more experience we see even better things from her.  The Flash movie is truly ambitious.  It’s supposed to have time travel and dimension hopping.  It’ll be a take on Flashpoint but also tie in past DC films like Keaton’s Batman.  The man himself will make an appearance.  I am just thinking back to the madcap energy Harley had barreling through the city.  Just imagine a speedster running through the multiverse.  Also I loved everything about Black Canary.  I loved that her mother is canonically a hero too with the same power.  I hope that is referenced in the Black Adam movie.  That will have the modern JSA, oldest heroes being Hawkman and Doctor Fate.  I hope there is a flashback to the Golden Age with this Black Canary’s mother kicking ass in the Justice Society.  

[tiktakknikknak]

The “Loki is genderfluid” thing never sat right with me, and I think I know why. 

It’s because MCU Loki was never actually written to be or portrayed as such, and they just threw it in as a pandering technique, and a poorly executed one at that. Yeah, I know, big shocker there. But let me explain. 

People point to the comics or even mythology (which at this point, is barely related to Marvel anyway) as proof of Loki’s genderfluidity, but the problem with the MCU is that it doesn’t follow the comics perfectly. It is its own AU-type cannon narrative with the same characters, some borrowed plotlines, and Easter eggs thrown in for good measure. Given that the comics are kind of their own beast, let’s set aside what we know and have had confirmed in the comics and focus on Disney’s/MCU’s Loki. 

In the movies we see clearly that Loki is a shapeshifter. This is cannon and confirmed. But a being a shapeshifter is not the same thing as being genderfluid, especially not if we think of gender as being a defining part of our individual identities. I think in the context of writing sci-fi/fantasy/superhero type of stuff, it’s kind of important to make that distinction because frankly, I think it lends itself to being a crutch- rather then representing gender fluidity in more authentic, relatable ways, writers brush it off as being able to literally change forms on a whim. It’s like a magical plot crutch that “magicks” away any perceived “weirdness” about the character, and it doesn’t really validate or explain gender fluidity in any real sense. 

In other words, it’s a cop out. It enables writers to say “yeah, this character’s eccentric and maybe kind of queer, but it’s because they can they’re magic !” rather than owning up and having a character’s genderfluidity stand as its own valid identity. Writers can point to their work as being inclusive and progressive, but at the same time, ignoring the regular, everyday sort of experience of real-world genderfluid/nonbinary/etc. people. For real-life genderfluid/non-binary/non-conforming (however you want to present), their non-conformity to gender roles cannot be just magicked away. It can’t be explained by a supernatural power or ability. Their non-conformity, perceived “weirdness”* that makes them different is just a part of who they are, and that’s something that should be normalized and acknowledged as a fact of life. I don’t think that gets represented enough, or at all, in its own right. 

My problem with Loki...the Loki of the MCU is portrayed up until (and through) the show as a strictly male-identifying/presenting character who happens to be capable of shapeshifting.  And then even in his own series, we so absolutely nothing to support or reference his gender identity or fluidity. Nothing. Just a brief line on a file from a screencap, which by the way, no casual viewer likely would have noticed. Your average viewer who hasn’t read any comics or doesn’t look this kind of stuff up online would have had no idea that Loki was genderfluid. Up until this point, Loki wasn’t written or given sort of any reference with this part of his identity in mind. It seemed to be a sudden, out-of-the-blue marketing gimmick (conveniently during pride month) with no effort or actual sincerity. It’s lazy and misguided, and frankly, I’m not impressed.

And don’t get me wrong- I’m all on board with genderfluid Loki, and genderfluid characters in general. The problem is in the execution of it all. They half-assed it (more like, 1/8th-assed it if I’m honest) and gave the audience nothing in the sense of real, genuine representation. If you’re going to make Loki genderfluid, then give us actual scenes, experiences, and actual direct references to his identity as such (that are also not strictly defined by his shapeshifting ability).  OR, just give us a new character that’s actually written with that sort of gender identity in mind from the start. Give us 100% or give us something totally different, but don’t give us a throwaway line and call it a day. 

*By “weirdness” I’m speaking from the perspective of the larger, cis/het members of society. I’m not calling people who are not cis-gendered weird. 

[harleyhua-archive]

it’s elle again! took me longer than I thought it would, but i’m here with the bio of my second son, harley. he’s my newest oc; i’ve had him for about a year, but i didn’t get to rp much during that time. i’m fluent in asl, so harley has a special place in my heart. usually my gifs that include him signing won’t actually match the signs up to what he’s saying, but this one does. he’s signing ‘hello, my name is....’ so it felt like an appropriate intro post.

[ chella man, genderqueer trans man, 21, he/him ] did you see who just walked in? it was that JUNIOR, the ╳ + HARDWORKING AND  - DISORGANIZED ╳  one? you know, the one who lives at SONTHENA HALL, HARLEY HUA! i heard they are majoring in ART and they can’t wait to get out of here to BECOME AN ILLUSTRATOR.  crap! stop staring, here they come!

name. harley hua hometown. detroit, mi major. art (illustration) birthday. may 27th, 2000 gender. trans man, genderqueer orientation. pansexual religion. jewish languages. english, asl, some cantonese and french hobbies. cheerleading, drawing, comic books

[ BIO ] [ tw. gender dysphoria ]

harley was born hard of hearing, although it wasn’t discovered until he was six. his audiologist discouraged his parents from teaching him sign, saying he would stop talking and stunt his language skills, so he grew up using his hearing aid and filling in the gaps with lipreading.

his yearly hearing tests showed he was gradually going deaf. he kept getting stronger hearing aids and being able to catch less and less of what was happening around him. the expectation was that he would get better at reading lips, but that only got him so far (only 30% of the English language is visible on the mouth!)

he had been a social kid, but he slowly withdrew into art. there, he could create anything he wanted. he often drew superheroes, or just ‘regular’ civilians (usually men). for a few years, harley took a sketch book and at least three graphic pencils everywhere he went.

in middle school, harley was eligible for a cochlear implant. his parents urged for him to get implanted, but decided to let him make the decision himself. he found a way to compromise with them; he agreed to get the surgery, but in exchange his parents agreed to pay for him and his brother to take ASL classes.

once activated, the implant was an immediate change. the world sounded different through it than what harley remembered, but he could understand his teachers and classmates better than he had in a very long time. he was able to join in again, and went from the kid scribbling in a notebook alone to being very outgoing. once he was able to use an ASL interpreter in classes, his confidence and grades shot up.

in high school, harley was very popular. it didn’t take long for his friends to give him a makeover, convincing him to throw out his baggy tshirts and most of his jeans, in favor of more feminine pieces. mini skirts, heels and crop tops (at least, when he could sneak them past his parents). he grew out his short hair to better hide his cochlear implants, smiling and nodding when he couldn’t keep up in conversations instead of drawing attention to his deafness. for the first time in his life he fit in, and he didn’t want to remind people that he was different.

(tw: dysphoria) but something was different, and it wasn’t his cochlear implants or the fact he was one of the only asian kids at his predominately white high school. something about the way he looked bothered him. he would often stare at himself in the mirror, and he knew the girl staring back at him in the mirror was pretty, but he couldn’t connect with ‘her’. she felt like a completely different person, almost like a mask he wore despite not understanding why he ‘needed’ to wear it or why he felt so numb to his own body.

the huas weren’t really hurting for money, but sending two teenagers to college only a year apart would be tough for any family. harley didn’t want to put that kind of stress on his parents, so he focused on cheerleading scholarships. he toured suffolk because it has one of the best cheer programs in the country. it was a dream school, but he doubted they’d want him on their team, let alone offer him enough money that he could afford to attend. yet that’s exactly what happened, so harley accepted and moved to boston.

during his freshman year of college, he realized nobody cared what he looked like in college. many of his classmates showed up to lectures in their pajamas. he started experimenting with his clothes, trading out the feminine pieces he’d been wearing for the past four years and wearing the things he wanted to; androgynous and masculine pieces. at first he wasn’t so sure why it made him happy, he just knew it did.

(tw: dysphoria) harley had never paid much attention to the trans community. he certainly never thought of himself as trans or genderqueer. sure, he often felt like an alien stuck in someone else’s body, but he assumed that was normal - something every girl secretly felt. after joining his college’s gsa and meeting trans people for the first time and hearing their stories, it began to click. harley came out towards the end of his freshman year of college, and started transitioning a few months later. his parents didn’t try to stop him, but it’s clear they don’t understand. a small part of harley is bothered by this, but he doesn’t let it get him down. it took a long time for them to accept he was deaf, too, but they eventually came around. they’re just slow to accept changes. between that and their refusal to learn ASL, harley isn’t on the best of terms with them, but he doesn’t stop to let this get to him. 

overall harley is a very happy kid. he’s at his dream college, living his best life and preparing for the future he’s wanted since he was a kid

[ HEADCANONS ]

not wanting to take much money from his parents, harley works as a bartender three days a week at a popular bar near campus

if he’s not at work or in class, he’s either practicing cheer, working out at the student rec center, or at one of two coffee shops (one being the starbucks in his building, the other being an independent mom-and-pop cafe not far from campus)

he’s basically a jock villager from animal crossing. as stated before, he’s really into cheerleading. since getting his top surgery last summer he’s fallen in love with swimming. he also lifts weights and goes running a couple times a week with nadia.

harley is very busy, and his schedule is constantly fluctuating between working late nights and practices at any time of day. he’s pretty much always sleep deprived, and lives on an insane amount of coffee (he doesn’t like energy drinks).

harley’s preferred method of communication is asl. he uses interpreters in class and is involved with the deaf community in boston. but since most people on the squad only know a limited amount of sign, and other people he knows on campus don’t know the language at all, he often relies on the combination of his cochlear implant and lipreading to communicate. if he can’t hear with his cochlear implant (dead battery, too much background noise, etc) he won’t be able to understand enough by reading lips. but on the other hand, if he’s using his implant to communicate, watching the other person’s mouth helps him fill in the blanks.

[ WANTED CONNECTION ]

teammate // they do cheer together, so they spend a lot of time with each other

asl friends // harley prefers asl, so it would be great for him to have people to sign with!

regular customer // your character hangs out at the bar harley works at. conversely, they’re a bariste at one of the cafes harley is at multiple times a day

workout buddies // they lift weights together

rainbow family // in the queer community, they say you make your own family. harley doesn’t have a great relationship with his parents, and his brother is attending school on the west coast, so harley could use some lgbtq+ family in boston

comic book nerds // harley loves comic books. they were a major escape for him growing up and how he got into drawing in the first place. so maybe your character is also really into comic books, or they just share a passion for the mcu movies

[ FINAL NOTES ]

That’s all I got, but I’m open to almost anything with him. Looking forward to getting to explore him more here!

[roseapothecary]

I’m posting this several hours past the deadline, but it’s okay bc I posted a single bingo a couple days ago (so that one counts). This has been an incredible fest! It’s my first EVER as a member of this fandom and I’ve enjoyed all of the wonderful, creative stories that came out of it... not to mention, I really enjoyed writing the three that I contributed myself! Thank you to the mods for organizing this, and to all of you that submitted work.

I decided to come back and fill out a full bingo card with recs.

The one line I did before just wasn’t enough.

... And, this time, I’m going to properly gush. 🥰

Featuring Art: you know what they say: better late than never

This is literally so fucking pure.

Rare Ships: everyday the hold is getting tighter (and it troubles me so)

Do Ruth/Stevie count as a rare ship? They’re not ~technically canon, so I’m counting it. This piece is REALLY sweet and features one of my favorite tropes (“there’s only one bed!!”)

Character Archetypes: breaking open the game

This is a GORGEOUS exploration of Patrick’s experience as a queer athlete. 

Alexis’ POV: Rollin' With the Homies

YA’LL. This fic tho. Like. Not only does Alexis’s POV really shine when read through this lens, it also blends so well with Cher’s tone that it’s... like... It’s perfect. It’s the perfect mashup. The author’s choice to write it in first-person was a boss move and I read the entire thing in Alexis’s actual voice in my head. AND TWYLEXIS KISS IN DISNEYLAND? COME. ON.

Audio/Podfic: [Podfic] Never Felt This Way Before 

This is one of my favorites from @schittposting​, given new life. Such a beautiful transformation of an already beautiful fic.

Patrick’s POV: What's New Pussycat?

There are literally no words to explain this. David is a cat. Literally. I never realized how on brand that would be, but... dude, David Rose is a cat.

Less Than 2k: lost mittens and dryer lint

Not only did this lead me into a spiral watching the original House Hippo advert and reading about that whole thing (fucking fascinating), it also had me giggling and smiling. So cute.

Romantic Tropes: You Look Like a Movie, You Sound Like a Song

SUCH a unique take on rom-com tropes and David’s love for them. I can’t say much more without spoiling the magic of it because it truly is an original concept. Just... take my word for it. Read it.

Set in SC: Budd is a dud! Vote Sands.

Love, love, love this view of Stevie/Twyla’s relationship. There’s a great mix of comedy, romance, and general sweetness.

Over 20k: I Waited My Whole Life

I mean, I love weddings and this has SEVERAL of them, so obviously it’s gonna be on my rec list. It’s a great story and a beautiful ride, from beginning to end. There’s a great balance of comedy and fluff... and tbh the banter? [chef’s kiss]

Fantasy and Fandom Tropes: Captive on the carousel of time 

There is so much to love about this fic. Seeing David and Patrick from Twyla’s perspective is absolutely adorable, for one, and Twyla’s perspective IN GENERAL is delightful. There’s also a time-loop AND Stevie/Twyla. 

Canon-Compliant: to the end of reckoning

This is a cool take on Patrick and Ronnie’s dynamic and I’ve frankly accepted it as part of my personal head-canon. It’s so spot on.

Free Space: More Than a Bird

At no point in my life did I think, “You know who would make a great superhero? David Rose.” Then I read this, and I haven’t stopped thinking... You know who would make a great superhero? David Fucking Rose. It’s a great exploration of his character and Patrick’s character... and also David’s familial dynamic with Stevie and Alexis. I would read another 20k of this, to be totally honest with ya’ll.

Free Space honorable mention: Make a Wish 

Okay, I couldn’t choose between this one and the above one for my free space, so you’re getting both. I fucking love this concept and how the author incorporated the rings into the genie mythos... and the mythos the author created in general for how genies work? The Aladdin references were lovely, but there’s also a fresh, original sorta vibe. And the background of HOW David ended up a genie in the first place is just... gold. Such a good story overall.

Platonic Tropes: Gonna Watch You Shine

Johnny and Stevie are family now. 🥺 

That’s it. That’s all you need to know. Read it.

Rare POV: didn’t ask for this--you freely gave it (so now i watch your mouth for both of us)

This fic takes you on the journey of Twyla and Alexis’s relationship over the course of the show through Twyla’s eyes and it’s stunning.

Based on a Movie: Taste of a Poison Paradise 

It’s Alexis as Harley Quinn. Do I need to say more? This is so so good. I love ALL of the author’s choices re: character alter egos. Rachel as Black Canary?  Stevie as Catwoman? STEVIE/RACHEL??? And, obvi, the Twylexis of it all. My favorite part (and why it gets this bingo slot) is the way Alexis’s thought bubbles actually made their way into the text, ala Harley’s voiceovers in Birds of Prey. It worked really really well. 

David’s POV: Flying Coach 

Genuinely a fucking delight. David’s characterization here is flawless, first of all, and... honestly, whoever you are, author person... I’d really like to see what happens next in Paris. So, if you could get on that, that would be great. [David Rose voice] Thanks so much.

Multiple Tropes: You Happened

High school David/Patrick and Stevie/Twyla? Sign me the fuck up. This is one of my favorite takes on the “David works at Rose Video” concept (which is already one of my fave SC tropes), and it seamlessly folds in so many different nods to canon. It’s sweet and it’s funny and it’s angsty and it’s just a lot. It’s so good.

Canadian Tropes: Close Encounters of the Alces Kind

This had me giggling basically the entire time. Who wouldn’t love a text-based fic about a moose? ...David, probably... but that’s it.

Featuring Music: favored nations

I will never shut up about this fic for as long as I fucking live. I’m literally tearing up writing this stupid little rec and thinking about it. David’s whole story with his galleries translates SO well into what the author set up for him here... and humble!famous Patrick is just Correct in every way. It’s a brilliant, brilliant AU... and tbh? I wish David and Patrick were real so they could actually create this play together. I’d love to see it. 

Set Outside SC: how it's gonna always be

This one stole my heart. It’s SO beautifully written, first of all, and it’s a great story. Both David and Patrick have the habit of running from their problems, but it’s with each other that they finally dive in headfirst. Also, y’know, the fic is 🔥🔥🔥.

WLW Fic: If You Could See The Other Side Of Me 

This had me fucking cackling. By now, ya’ll know how much Stevie/Alexis mean to me and dksvjioehgo dude this take is just... [chef’s kiss]. The author even wrote lyrics. Like. That ALONE sends this fic to the next fucking level. Quebecky Stan 4 Lyfe.

Stevie’s POV: In the Running

Another take on the “Stevie and Twyla compete for a council seat” prompt. I loved how this brought out their competitive sides. A delight.

Multiple Chapters: four four four two 

SOFT!!! ALSO THERE ARE BAKED GOODS!!! AND INCREDIBLY FLIRTATIOUS NOTES!!! AND PEEK-A-BOO STEVIE/RUTH TOO!

Gen Fic: The Guestbook of David and Patrick Rose-Brewer 

The voices are so spot on. Just. So perfect. I wish I could hear the actors read this.

[contextualstudieslorena]

IS BEING A PART OF THE LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY A TREND?

+Throughout the years’ many people are seen coming out as queer. And nowadays it is even more common to see queer characters in media as something that is becoming normalised. For example, in this early graph made by Gallup, (an American analytics and advisory company based in Washington, D.C.) we can see that the amount of people ‘coming out ‘ and identifying as a part of the LGBT community grows every year. Yet, it is seen to be more common in people who are born from 2002 to 1997, that being generation Z. After that, being Millenials, who are followed by generation X. Besides that, it can be seen that few traditionalists identify as LGBT, for a reason that I will be talking about in this essay.

We can also see in the graft that those numbers rise throughout the years. And why does this happen? Is it because Millennials and Gen Z started a new trend of being queer? Or is it because they feel more comfortable talking about issues that used to be hidden before.

Queer representation has indeed been growing a lot, if not in movies or magazines, Kids nowadays can spot a drag queen only looking through social media, or even Netflix, a Movie platform that has been seen adding a lot of queer characters to their movies and shows. If Netflix is doing a good job at bringing awareness and representation that is another conversation but compared to 10 years ago, it is noticeable that every day queer representation grows more and more.

Yet, the only place we can see this is in media, as there is not much of it in the regular history classes we have at school.

It is also important to note that kids can be very moldable. They spend more than 11 years of their life copying exactly everything they see, that being something positive or not. And that happens so often, that a boy died in Indonesia after trying to copy the fictional superhero Spider-Man. ‘Police are investigating if a five-year-old boy in Jakarta was trying to mimic Spider-Man after he jumped out a window to his death after being told he couldn’t watch the latest movie in the franchise.’. And as surprising as this can be, it shows kids and teenagers can be influenced by something so much, they will try to mimic it, which might be happening to all the Gen Z adults who grew up with media shoving down LGBT content down their throats. As well as that, they can also be following their friend’s choices to come out and can be even lying to their own selves for attention.

I could spend an enormous amount of time writing about how social media can affect peoples sexuality and gender but I’d rather do something more educating and look at the past. Where humans started coming together as tribes and living in a society, having to deal with the presence of each other and create romantic and social relationships.

When talking about same-gender relationships the queer community mentions how normal gay relationships are in nature. Petter Boeckman, Norweigan Zoologist would say that more than 1500 species of animals have been seen having some type of homosexual interaction, those not only being mammals but as Boeckman stated "We're talking about everything from mammals to crabs and worms. The actual number is of course much higher. Among some animals homosexual behaviour is rare, some having sex with the same gender only a part of their life, while other animals, such as the dwarf chimpanzee, homosexuality is practised throughout their lives." as well as that, he then compares chimpanzees to humans who identify as homosexual "If a female has sex with a male one time, but thousands of times with another female, is she bisexual or homosexual? This is the same way to have children is not unknown among homosexual people.". However, Petter wasn’t the only one who found homosexual interactions between animals, Kurt Kotrschal, a known biologist for researching these types of behaviours has confirmed that these ty pes of relationships are beneficial for the species.

I am mentioning animals not only to show that homosexuality is natural to other species but because they can be even more related to indigenous people.

Indigenous people are the ones who can be seen the most in contact with nature. They have decades of history of not having any contact with other human beings than the ones that were located in the same tribe as them, and as much as they would fight with other tribes and move around they still had their tribes, where they would create relationships in and settle their tents. They didn’t have any contact with books and science before the colonizers came in 1500 and even after that many tribes weren’t discovered by them in the middle of the Amazon forest, so many of them didn’t even get to be influenced by the Europeans and their racism and misogynistic views and homophobic religion.

The point I want to make is that indigenous people are the ones who are the closest to animals, and if they saw an animal do a homosexual interaction, they would probably see it as something that is intended to happen and not weird, as animals don’t have a perception of that is morally wrong or not. They are a part of nature, different from the Europeans who colonized them who were already influenced by the church and their extremist ideas. And as much as it would be wonderful to have indigenous people be so open-minded as they were, Colonization happened, and with that, so did a period where Europeans found the need to force their catholic beliefs on them, as well as bringing many diseases and suffering. Cieza de Leon, a chronicler of the conquest in Peru once said, and I quote ‘ Within a somewhat different framework. During the colonial years, indigenous morality changed, partly as a result of contact with the Europeans.’She also believes and argues that indigenous people had a spiritual justification for doing anal sex with their partners ( which is now seen as something Queer people are more familiar with), that being in a same-sex or straight relationship. This spiritual justification had to do with their religious beliefs. While Colonial Latin American societies would see anal sex within their own beliefs, Iberian societies would see sodomy as a way of showing male dominance.

There are not that many pieces of evidence of Queer indigenous people in history, as the colonizers would murder them and force them to stop being who they truly were. However, there’s an engraving that shows a little bit more about their experience as trans indigenous people in colonial times. In this engraving made by Theodor de Bry in 1594 as part of his Les Grands Voyages, we can see how this homophobia is well represented. In the art piece, 8 men are shown wearing noble clothes, and between them was Vasco Nunez de Balboa, a man known for being a Spanish nobleman who conquered Panama. But what is atrocious about this art piece is what is in front of them, 3 men being eaten alive by dogs after being demanded to do so by the nobleman, after being seen dressed as women. However, what is most ironic about this engraving is the way it’s presented, which plays when seeing the men standing above them. Who present themselves in a feminine way earring clothes that could nowadays be considered quite puffy and girly. This engraving is only the beginning of what queer indigenous people had to go through, of course not mentioning the amount of evidence of homophobia that was probably erased through the time. To summarize Brazil’s colonization process, the European view on lust, nudity, polygamy, cannibalism, sodomy and homosexuality which was normal to indigenous people, was considered to be against nature and gods will, and their job was to basically baptise as many natives as they wanted and shove catholic ideas down their throat.

Yves d’Evreux, a french capuchin priest delivered a highly dramatic letter, that presented his reaction on how he encountered an indigenous that could be considered a trans man. His trip to Northern Brasil (1613-1614) surprised him , as he reacted in a negative way towards them. As he wrote ‘There is, in Juniparan, in the Island, a hermaphrodite, in the exterior more man than a woman, since he has the face and the voice of woman, with fine, flexible and long hair, however [he] was married and had children (...). (d’Evreux, 1874, p. 90) he then mentions this man again, as he ran after him with the French to ‘purify his soul’ and kill him, he was then captured and chained under the fort of Sao Luis and was obliged to say the following ‘You will die for your crimes, we approve your death and I myself want to light the fuse for the Frenchmen to know and to see that we hate your evil deeds [...]: when Tupan sends someone to take your body, if you want to have in the Heaven the long hair and the body of a woman instead of that of a man, ask Tupan to give you the woman’s body and to be resurrected woman, and you will be in Heaven on the side of women and not of men. (d’Evreux, 1874, p. 232). This however is just a glimpse of what transgender people had to go through during colonial times and still to this day. The queer community is a community that is supposed to help everyone, but that doesn’t focus much on the history of indigenous people and how much they suffered.

In conclusion, as much as nowadays, people can be highly influenced by others, the LGBTQ community has been around for a rather long time and it is not something that the newest generation has made up. From the colonization times till nowadays, queer people have felt oppressed and the necessity to ‘stay in the closet’ and not be their true selves while being afraid of getting judged or even murdered by random people or even close ones. However, nowadays people have been talking more about important issues such as homophobia, sexism and racism, which is making queer people feel more comfortable Even though, they are still fighting for their rights, and they’re still in the long run, protesting for all the people who have died since Europeans somehow decided that god found their sexual choices to be unnatural and demoniac. Now, what is left for us to do is to create a healthy environment and show more representation in media every single day, so more queer people feel comfortable without having to spend their entire lives fighting and running away from who they are. Being queer is not a trend, but queer people have been being hidden from us our entire lives. They were always there, and they are always going to be there.

Bibliography:

Partal, Y., 2021. Are there gay animals in nature? Homosexuality in the animal world. [online] Zoo Portraits. Available at: <https://www.zooportraits.com/animal-homosexuality/> [Accessed 5 April 2021].

Sigal, P., 2003. Infamous desire. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, p.2.

Fernandes, E. and Arisi, B., 2017. Gay Indians in Brazil. 1st ed. Springer.

News-Medical.net. 2021. 1,500 animal species practice homosexuality. [online] Available at: <https://www.news-medical.net/news/2006/10/23/1500-animal-species-practice-homosexuality.aspx> [Accessed 9 April 2021].

New York Post. 2021. 5-year-old boy dies ‘trying to be Spider-Man’. [online] Available at: <https://nypost.com/2014/05/04/5-year-old-boy-dies-trying-to-be-spider-man/> [Accessed 9 April 2021].

Jackson, A., Thomas, M. and Steffen, A., 2021. Homosexuality Is Natural. [online] Exposing The Truth. Available at: <https://www.exposingtruth.com/homosexuality-is-natural/> [Accessed 9 April 2021].

Buchholz, K., 2021. Infographic: 5.6 Percent of U.S. Adults Identify as LGBT. [online] Statista Infographics. Available at: <https://www.statista.com/chart/18228/share-of-americans-identifying-as-lgbt/> [Accessed 9 April 2021].

Pictures:

1475. Spanish Explorer Ordering Native Indians To Be Torn Pieces By Dogs Copper Engraving 16Th Century. [image] Available at: <http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/debry-atrocities.htm> [Accessed 9 April 2021].

n.d. Two indigenous women kissing at an LGBTQ+ pride parade. [image] Available at: <http://@indigenasLGBTQ> [Accessed 9 April 2021].

n.d. Trans (We’wha (Zuni) circa 1849-1896 Mexican Indigenous woman. [image].

[a-little-slice-of-fandom]

unpopular opinion: lgbtq coding or actors/writers/producers/whoever else works on a movie i don't know enough about film saying that a character is lgbtq doesn't make it canon. if that's how they view the character (especially writers or producers) then they can fucking put it in the script. it's essentially queerbaiting while pandering to conservative audiences

Okay I’m assuming you’re talking about birds of prey and not Six (which also has queercoded characters), and I have some thoughts.

Firstly, Birds of Prey DID put canon queer characters in the script. Harley is confirmed to be bisexual within the first five minutes of the film, with Poison Ivy (or someone who looks suspiciously like her) appearing in that slot machine bit where Harley talks about her previous relationships. As a bisexual women who never really sees myself represented in blockbuster films (especially superhero films), I was so glad that BOP carried over Harley’s bisexuality from the comics. And we have to remember, this isn’t some throwaway character...this is Harley fucking Quinn, one of the most popular DCEU characters to date. And she’s queer and it’s not treated as a big deal! It’s just a part of her character. (Plus, Margot Robbie herself and Cathy Yan want to introduce poison Ivy into the DCEU soon and get that queer relationship going which would be absolutely fantastic and I for one cannot wait). And that’s not even mentioning Renee Montoya, was confirmed to be a lesbian within the script and whose sexuality directly impacts the plot via her ex wife. That was literally in the script.

I’m not going to get in to the whole thing surrounding Black Mask and Zsasz because I don’t feel qualified to discuss that and I understand why some people dislike how they portrayed them, but what I can get in to is Huntress and Black Canary’s relationship. Because I have a lot of feelings.

Do these characters specifically say that they’re part of the LGBT community within the script? No. They don’t. But there was no point in the script where it would have come up naturally. Huntress spent 90 percent of the script being awkward and fighting people. At what point would she bring up her sexuality? Same with Dinah. They had shit to do and honestly in their situations I don’t see why they would need to bring up that they’re gay. Contrary to some people’s beliefs...gay people don’t go around announcing that they’re gay every four seconds. Why would these characters do that?

But what Birds of Prey did do was show some small moments of chemistry between those two characters, specifically the diner scene at the end where Dinah keeps complimenting Helena and correcting Renee on Helena’s behalf. When I first saw that scene, I definitely got some vibes there...and then I find this interview a few weeks later where the actresses confirmed that that’s what they were actively going for!

But here’s the thing: I don’t personally see any of what birds of prey did queerbaiting. Why? Because the film never really flaunted it’s gay characters or tried to gain brownie points with the LGBT community by saying that it was some cornerstone of representation. There was a little bit of coverage on Harley being confirmed to be bi, but Margot Robbie (who also produced the film) was very casual about the whole thing. She didn’t see it as a big deal, didn’t act as if she was some amazing person for putting it in, she just treated it as a normal, everyday thing that she wanted to carry over from the comic books. Compare that to another comic book oriented series of films that keeps saying they have queer representation and keep acting as if they’re doing something amazing for the queer community by having these characters exist but the actual scenes that would back these claims up are mysteriously nowhere to be seen. Or how about teen wolf? Remember that video of two of the actors hinting that their characters would be in a relationship in the upcoming but they actually weren’t. Or fuck it, how about Supergirl? They keep teasing the audience that maybe Kara and Lena will get into a relationship but refuse to go anywhere with it or commit to it. These series draw in LGBT people with the hints that these characters are maybe possibly part of the community but never want to take the dive and fully commit.

But Birds of prey didn’t tease anyone. It didn’t try and draw LGBT people in by flaunting their characters. Birds of Prey simply showed us a handful of confirmed queer characters, and also showed some characters who either have great chemistry (Dinah and Helena) or hint towards their relationships in a different way (for example Black Mask and Zsasz wearing each other’s clothes) and then confirmed beyond the film that, yeah, that’s what they were going for. It doesn’t mean that these characters are 100 canonically gay, but feels a hell of a lot more genuine than other studios or other films.

And pander to a conservative audience? I’m pretty sure all conservatives hated this film for its stance on patriarchal structures and misogyny. Birds of Prey did a lot of things...pandering wasn’t one of them.

Could the film have been gayer? Yeah...a lot of it is blink and you’ll miss it moments and I would have loved for characters like Poison Ivy to actually show up. But,,, damn it I respect the film for a) putting it all in there and b) never treating any of it like a big deal or trying to act as if they did something amazing for representation. And, just like I said in my last post, I feel like there’s a big difference in having one vaguely queer coded character versus having 2 definitely confirmed ones and 4 coded ones. And if we want more openly and explicitly gay characters or more LGBT romances (such as Harley and Ivy) then we need to show support for a film that, while it wasn’t perfect in the representation department, was at least trying to give audiences queer characters.

As always feel free to disagree with me on this or continue to discuss it. I can only speak from my personal experiences with my sexuality, but I (for the most part) enjoyed how BoP added LGBT characters into the film without trying to act as if it was revolutionary.

[idontknowanymoreaaaaaa]

After watching the live action Kim Possible movie:

Don’t mess with a good tv show

Please

Why did they get rid of Kim being a cheerleader and replace it with soccer? (Yeah I know she said she wanted to try out for cheer and Bonnie told her they were all about soccer in high school, but the whole sport trading thing was just weird they should’ve stuck with cheerleading, that’s what made Kim Possible so amazing) She was a cheerleader NOT a soccer player

Also, where was Monique? Okay I know that the movie is set in their freshman year of high school and they didn’t meet Monique until like, the 2nd season of the show, but still, she was Kim’s best friend aside from Ron. And instead they replaced her with Athena who was so obviously a robot, like I saw that coming from the moment she started fangirling over Kim (although I don’t blame her I mean Athena gave off major queer vibes and if she wasn’t an evil robot designed by Drakken she definitely would’ve just been a gay in denial with a crush on Kim. Who doesn’t have a crush on Kim though I mean she’s smart and talented and kind and pretty...)

And at first I didn’t like that they changed up Drakken so much, I mean, where was his iconic spiky ponytail? Where was the blue skin? But admittedly, the new look grew on me (if he were closer to my age I might even think he was hot) and they did give him like, super blue looking veins, possibly hinting at future blue skin if there were a sequel??? Or maybe it was just a design choice so that the actor didn’t have to constantly have full blue makeup and I’m reading too much into it

Shego. I am so in love with Shego. She’s GORGEOUS. I loved the look, I didn’t even care that she wasn’t pale green. She was amazing. She looked perfect, the acting, the personality was on POINT she was just a fucking masterpiece. A work of art. I am gay.

I loved Ron, his voice was so close to the original that sometimes when I looked away from the screen and he started talking, I could actually picture the original Ron speaking. He was amazing, not perfect, but pretty dang good. Also I think I’m gay for Ron (wait is that weird to say since I’m technically almost 18 and he’s canonically a freshman in the movie? I mean I felt the same about cartoon Ron and he was also canonically in high school but by the end of the show he was an adult and that’s kind of when I started to have queer feelings for him so does that make it okay since he was a senior and I’m a senior or am I just making excuses for myself?? I’m probably worrying too much about this since it’s a fictional character and our age difference isn’t even that far off but I still kinda feel weird about it soo...). Or maybe it’s just that I want to be Ron. I’m not entirely sure. But I’ve definitely got some sort of queer feelings going on for Ron

Kim herself could’ve been better. I liked the look, though her eyes definitely weren’t as green as they were in the show but that’s just a cartoon-to-real-life thing and I have to deal with it. Her acting wasn’t as good as Ron or Shego and I’m a little disappointed in that but I don’t blame the actress, I imagine it’s very difficult to play a girl who is simultaneously one of the most girly girls on the planet, and a tomboyish superhero and I definitely could not have done it so considering all things I’m sure the actress did the best she could. I think my main problem is that the movie was so short compared to the tv show (obviously they can’t cram 4 seasons of character development into an hour an a half) but we didn’t really get to know Kim. She gave her brief narration at the beginning of the movie that kinda-sort of explained how she got into the hero business but it was like, 1 minute of explanation mixed with fighting and explosions so that’s not much character background to go off of which means you only really know Kim if you’ve already seen the show, but even then this is set before the show (obviously since they’re just starting high school whereas in the show they’re already in high school and seem to be fairly familiar with the building which means they’re not freshmen). Overall I think her characterization could’ve been better. She’s not as fleshed-out as she was in the show, and I understand it’s hard to translate a tv show into a movie, like I said earlier in this paragraph, but I’ve seen it done before and this definitely could’ve been done better. (Although it’s still not the worst movie adaptation I’ve seen, I’m looking at you Percy Jackson)

We didn’t get to see much of the tweebs which was kinda disappointing, I loved their antics (and helpfulness) in the show, and in the movie we don’t get any of that. They’re just background characters. I did like that they were played by actual twins though, it’s like Fred and George. Actual twins just play twins better than everyone else

I absolutely LOVED Nana. She wasn’t in the show much, but she was very present in the movie and I enjoyed it. However, if we’re taking the movie as a prequel to the show (and based on the time placement of everything, I’m taking it as a prequel) then that would mean Kim already knew about Nana’s awesome fighting skills before the episode where we meet her, and that would mean that Kim would’ve had to forget about her Nana’s awesomeness and no one thought it was a problem that needed fixed. Maybe Nana asked Kim’s mom to do a little forced brain surgery to get rid of the memory? But that doesn’t make any sense, since in both the movie and the show, Nana doesn’t seem to have a problem with Kim knowing about her skills. So yeah, that bit bugs me, but overall, 10/10 loved Nana

I actually only have one other problem with this movie (other than the fact that a lot of Kim’s lines were super cheesy(and not the yummy naco kind of cheese))

In the show they clearly state MULTIPLE TIMES that Ron bought Rufus at Smarty Mart because his dad has allergies and so he wasn’t allowed to have any pets with hair/fur

But in the movie, Ron just takes Rufus from the lab where they fight Shego. He stole Rufus. And sure, you could say that Ron saved Rufus from whatever experiments might have been done on him if Ron hadn’t taken him, but then what about all the other helpless animals huh? They’re gonna get experimented on and no one seems to care about that. I want answers. Either stick to the original canonity of Ron buying Rufus from Smarty Mart, or have Ron save all the animals from potentially horrible experimentation, even the electric eels, I will not allow exceptions. It just didn’t make any sense for them to change the Rufus-Ron relationship backstory. There was no need to change it. It made perfect sense in the show. It made no sense in the movie. I rest my case.

The movie in general wasn’t terrible I suppose, but as I’ve said multiple times in this post, it could’ve been better. There was so much potential and they screwed it up. But as a stand-alone film, loosely based off a perfect tv show, it was pretty good